Reviews > Clothing > Pants and Shorts > Ibex Approach Tights > Cora Shea > Long Term Report

Long Term Use If you are reading this after my field report, you probably know how much I loved these tights by that time of writing. After that point at the end of my field report, I launched into nearly 40 more days of field use with the tights before writing this long term report. And as for my opinions, well, let me just say that I essentially moved into the tights in the outdoors, and I really don't intend to move out again. The tights have proven to be the most versatile layer I've ever owned. Let me say that with a few qualifications: I don't like packing the tights (they're heavy and bulky) but I love wearing the tights. Here is the breakdown I enjoyed using the tights the most in: Below 20 F (-5 C) Aerobic or Stationary activity - The tights were great under shells - they moved and breathed like a second warmer skin. Though, they were not warm enough alone with just a shell below 20 F (-5 C) when I was standing still. 20 F (-5 C) to 60 F (15 C) Aerobic activity - The tights performed quite well on their own, or with a light breathable pant over them. They really felt like a second skin on layering - they are very stretchy and comfortable. 20 F (-5 C) to 60 F (15 C) Stationary activity - The tights served as a great layering piece in this temperature range. Usually, I wanted a shell or something similar to block the weather if I was standing still. Above 60 F (15 C) Stationary activity - The tights still felt comfortable on my skin even though it was warm. Aerobic activity (running, hard hiking) was too much and too hot in this range, but if I was just standing around I could leave them on comfortably. This was nice since I would usually have to take normal long underwear off when it got this warm, only to replace the long underwear late at night when it got cold again (which means lots of stripping). The tights did get uncomfortable above 85 F (30 C) but usually I could leave them on all day up to that point to stay comfortable at night without changing. An example of the perfect trip I used the tights on was a slightly-backcountry climbing trip 5 days long. The hike in was short (only about 1 mile / 1.6 km) and most of the activities involved just sitting around, interspersed with short bursts of aerobic activity (games, short hikes, scrambling around rocks, etc). Temperatures ranged from 30 F (-1 C) to 75 F (24 C), with wind during the night. The tights could do it all, and stayed on all 5 days constantly - under a pair of light cotton pants during the day, and nothing else over them while I slept. I don't think any other long underwear I own would have covered the same range and the same bursts of activity as comfortably and as unnoticed (but appreciated) as the Approach Tights did. In short, for moderate and cooler/cold temperatures, the tights performed like a second skin which added warmth when I needed it, and breathed well when I started running around. What a range!

Long Term Opinions Long Term Care and Maintenance: Sure, the tights are pretty easy to wash (I put them in the sink with a bit of Woolite detergent and hung them to dry) but before that I discovered the most amazing thing about them - I refrained from washing them for forty field days of use from the first test. And then I smelled them. And.... nothing. I had a hunch, sure, since around the field report time I hadn't washed them and they didn't smell, and I was wondering if their incredible nearly-clean feel would hold after twenty additional days of sweaty and hot spring and summer use. It did. Of course, to me the lack of stench (which would have appeared after day 5 or so for any other piece of clothing I own) after day 40 is more than just the lack of stench. The tights still felt fresh. They hadn't pilled up, or stretched out, and really, they didn't feel or look worn at all (other than the odd bit of fuzz and down feather stuck to them). So I washed them for the heck of it, and wore them for another 20 days. Still ready, still fresh. These tights are just about the lowest maintenance article of clothing I've had. They're great! Long Term Durability: For what they are, the durability on the tights is great. But, let it be said that I didn't slide down rocks with them, I didn't bushwhack through Manzanita with them, and - truth be told - most of the time they spent in hiding either under another pair of pants or inside my sleeping bag. So would these stand up to abuse without the protection of another outer layer? I don't know, and I didn't want to find out because I loved the tights so much. But, I really feel that the tights are built as what they are advertised to be - a midlayer. They certainly held up to days and days and days of abuse underneath an outer layer, and although that affords them a lot of protection it is also nothing to be sniffed at - especially since they came out with no pilling, no stretching, and no wearing at the spots (knees, butt, ankles) where they constantly rubbed against my socks, boots, and outer layers.

Summary Overall, the Approach Tights have been an amazingly versatile piece of gear. I found them to be a bit bulky for trips where I packed them in my pack, but for trips where I wore them all the time I was always comfortable. More comfortable than any other bottom layer I've ever used. And these wear-all-the-time trips were not just limited to the cold of winter - I used and enjoyed the tights year-round. Likes Dislikes A great fit Not very wind resistant Has an amazing temperature comfort range High waist is hard to pull up under bibs No smell! No good way to keep waist string cinched down

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Reviews > Clothing > Pants and Shorts > Ibex Approach Tights > Cora Shea > Long Term Report